Tag Archives: VOD

The new guide interface is more intuitive, delivering an
industry-leading customer experience. The HD Guide user interface offers
many improvements when compared to the SD Guide, including: faster
navigation, redesigned menus to ensure optimal usability and enhanced
shortcuts/preference functionality. The HD Guide is available for 6XX
series receivers only. Legacy receivers (including 5XX HD receivers)
will not be updated.

With the launch of HD Guide, two features on the 6XX series receiver have been retired:

Interactive Weather Application.

Instant Pay-Per-View (IPPV) ordering: the IPPV order feature has
been removed from the 6XX series. The phone line will remain for caller
ID only. IPPV will continue to be available on all legacy receivers.

There are six new major features introduced with the HD Guide:

1. Customizations

Three different font sizes are available, controlling the number of
rows of data in the guide, plus two different program colouring options.
These settings can be changed at any time by pressing the following:
Options // Preferences // User Settings & Appearance.

2. MiniTune & MiniPlay

MiniTune: You can press the ‘B’ button from the guide to immediately
tune the video window to the selected channel, while maintaining your
current position in the menu.

MiniPlay: For customers with an HDPVR 630, MiniPlay functions the
same way as MiniTune, but within your list of recorded programs. You can
press ‘B’ to begin playback of the selected program in the video
window, while maintaining your current position in the PVR list.

3. PPV Store

A new way of browsing available PPV movies! Selecting ‘PPV Search’ from the Pay-Per-View (PPV) menu bar allows you to:

Narrow results by genre.

Show clear ordering instructions and ID above the movie description.

Be notified that the purchase has been successful once it’s been ordered through the IVR.

Purchased program are identified by a checkmark in the guide, PPV Store, and ‘Upcoming Airings’ screens.

4. Smart PVR Technology

Our HDPVR has an overlooked feature: the ability to look for the
episode on multiple channels. This feature, in conjunction with the fact
that Shaw Direct carries channels from every Canadian time zone,
effectively eliminates recording conflicts.

The HDPVR allows you to record from ‘HD only’, ‘SD only’, or ‘All channels’, rather than a single channel.

Descriptive information written in user-friendly language.

You can also edit your recording preferences by pressing ‘Enter’ on the program and selecting the new menu option.

When customizing a particular recording event, you can now access a
‘More Channels’ selector to change the channel you want the recording to
take place on.

5. Multi-User and Single User Modes

Multi-User Mode: Up to eight users can have their own preferences
applied at login, in addition to parentally-defined permissions, locks,
and restrictions.

The current profile can be changed at any time by pressing the FAV button on the remote. Each profile can have a unique PIN.

Users can be copied to a USB key for transfer to another satellite receiver.

Single User Mode: It uses the same approach as before, wherein a
single set of restrictions is applied consistently and unlocked
individually on an ad-hoc basis. While Multi-User mode generally does
not present a PIN challenge upon encountering locked content,
Single-User mode does.

When migrating from SD Guide with the Parental Controls enabled, you will be placed into this mode by default.

You can switch between Single and Multi-User modes whenever you want. If set, a PIN is required to make this change.

6. Notification Bar

The Notification Bar replaces the ‘Alert’ (!) icon used in the SD
Guide and will notify you of Caller ID, PPV purchases, reminders or
auto-tunes, dual recordings, and more. It also displays the signal
strength, Internet connectivity status (for VOD), HDD space (HDPVR only)
and number of active reminders.

Press the ‘Down’ arrow while watching TV to show the notification bar.

Other enhancements:

The A, B and C buttons on the remote control serve as shortcuts in a number of different windows – try them out!

New ways to search for content: Keyword Search and Category Search. Press Menu // Search to see the different categories.

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The 86th Academy Awards aired Sunday, March 2nd
on ABC and CTV (for us Canadians!). Getting nominated is simply an
honor; receiving a coveted gold statuette is considered one of the
greatest achievements in the industry! The 2014 Oscars were hosted by
Ellen DeGeneres, known for her fabulous sense of humour and
entertainment qualities – She broke Twitter for a short while with that selfie
and ordered pizza for everyone. The night went on smoothly with
performances, among others, from Pharrell Williams, Karen O and Idina
Menzel (aka Adele Dazim, if you’re a slightly-off John Travolta).

The Oscars are organized by the Academy
of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS). Movies, actors and
actresses, music scores, directors and other behind-the-scenes
components are nominated into different categories and voted on by over
6,000 Academy members. You can learn more about the Oscars’ history
right here.

Bottom line: What we care the most about these events are the winners, those who should have won (we’re looking at you, Leo), and how good-looking everyone was in their outfits! Take a look at the gentlemen here and the beautiful ladies here. They looked ever-so-glamorous during the ceremony, but also at the after party – Pictures galore here!

The complete list of nominees and winners can be found on the Oscars Site. Many of the nominated and winning movies are already available on Shaw Direct Pay-Per-View (channels 951-983) or Shaw Direct Video On Demand:

12 Years a Slave: Best Picture, Best Supporting Actress (Lupita Nyong’o).

If you wish to get more information on
our Pay Per View or Video On Demand services, don’t hesitate to chat
with a member of our eCare team via our Contact Us page, available 7 AM to 9 PM MT Monday to Friday, or contact our Social media team on Facebook or Twitter.

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It’s that time of year again. A time for hot chocolate, woolly toques, building snowmen, and of course, the Shaw Fire Log.

You can enjoy it on channel 299 (in between regular programming), in HD on channel 955 (you’ll need a 600-series receiver), or on Shaw Direct On Demand.
Can’t wait until you’re at home to bask in the warm glow of the fire
log? Fear not: Today we introduce the Shaw Fire Log online, available exclusively on our Facebook page! Whether you’re on your laptop, tablet, or smartphone, you can see all of the ember-y goodness.

Did you know that the original televised fire log was on New York’s
WPIX in 1966? It was inspired by an animated Coca Cola commercial that
showed Santa in front of a fireplace. WPIX CEO Fred Thrower wanted the
channel to be available to New Yorkers who lived in apartments or homes
without fireplaces.

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Ever wanted to figure out what you should watch when you get home
before you get there? With the Shaw On Demand Search app, you can do
just that. Whether you’re waiting for the bus or on the train, you can
browse our entire Shaw Direct On Demand library from the comfort of your
mobile device, and even order your pick so it’s ready to go as soon as
you get home.

The app is currently available for Apple iOS devices and Android, so
you can get it for your iPhone 3GS and up, your iPad 2 or the new iPad,
on any iPod Touch device, and any Android device with version 2.2 and
up. You can download it for free from Apple here, and from Google app store for Android here.

When
you launch the app, you’ll be taken to a login page with three
different options; the first two (“Email” and “Customer Centre”) are for
Shaw customers, while the third (“Shaw Direct”) is the one you’ll want
to tap on. To login, you need to ensure that you’ve already registered
for an online ShawDirect.ca account. You’ll also need to know the password that you used for the online account, as well as your account number.

Once
you’ve entered this information and the login has been completed,
you’ll automatically be taken to the main “Movies” page, which allows
you to browse the listings in several different ways, including by
genre, by newest release, and by the most popular titles. Pricing for
these titles ranges from free up to $6.99 (taxes extra).

One of the browsing options that we liked was “All Movies,” which
takes you to a master list of all available movie titles. The cool thing
about this is that you can alter the results by tapping on “Sort” in
the top-right corner. Here, you can choose to sort alphabetically by
title, by the year of release, by the star rating, by popularity,
and by the date the title was added to our library, which is great if
you’re not entirely sure what you’d like to watch yet. You can also
choose to only have the app display movies that are available in HD.

The icons along
the bottom of the screen will take you to the other areas of Shaw Direct
On Demand listings, including “Movies,” “TV,” “Subscription,”,
“Search,” and “More.”

Tapping on “TV” will show you all of the On Demand titles offered by a
variety of broadcasters; the titles will be broken up by the different
channels, and the content listed here will be available at no charge as
long as you have a subscription to the channel.

Speaking
of subscription, the “Subscription” section will list premium channels
such as Movie Central or The Movie Network. If you have a subscription
to one of the premium channels, you’ll receive On Demand content from
that channel at no cost.

“Search” allows you to look for listings by their title, by the name of one of the listed actors, or by the director’s name.

“More”
provides you with the option to view titles that you’d like to watch in
future (“Wishlist”), your current orders, settings (including changing
your preferred language), general help, and allows you to search for
content based on a specific language (“Multicultural”). You can also
sign out of your account through here.

To order a title, tap on the listing, which will take you to a
description of it. At the bottom of the description, there is a blue
icon that says “Order Now”; tap this to choose your format (SD or HD),
and then tap “Complete Order.” When the order is successful, you’ll be
taken to a screen with instructions on how to watch the title once
you’re settled in front of your receiver.

If you’d rather just add the title to your wishlist, you can do that
too. Just to the left of the “Order Now” icon is a small heart icon.
Simply tap on this, and the title will appear in your wishlist to be
ordered at a later date.

One thing to bear in mind with this app is that you are only able to
search titles and remotely order them; it does not stream video.

Any questions about the Shaw On Demand Search app? Don’t hesitate to ask us in the comments below.

Starting on February 12 (for HDPVR 630 units) and February 18 (for
HDDSR 600/605 units), Shaw Direct will be deploying software
version 09.15. Once targeted (as seen on
line I in OPTIONS 4-7), your receiver will automatically update at
around 2:10AM local time. It is not possible to force the update
if you have not been targeted.

The overall look and feel is unchanged with this download, with the exception of updating branding.

This release provides increased VOD speeds, significant PPV
enhancements, updated Closed Captions decoding and improved
stability. Prior to 09.15, the last software download was 08.26 in
late October 2012.

09.15 Release Highlights

Overall Stability Improvements

General updates related to stability/reliability to reduce the chances of the receiver becoming “frozen”

If an issue is encountered that the unit is unable to resolve, a reboot may occur automatically to restore normal operation.

Shaw Direct On Demand (VOD) Dual Streaming & Usability Updates

Network and streaming drivers have been rewritten to enhance network throughput and VOD streaming performance.

A substantial increase in average speeds has been experienced with our Field Trial and Employee Trial groups.

If you previously had unexpectedly low Speed Test results, or issues streaming during localpeak usage, an improvement should be seen with this release.

Unsubscribed content on VOD should display “grey” consistently, rather than sometimes giving a W4 error.

Shaw Direct On Demand (VOD) Adult Content

Support has been added for Adult content. Adult content is found in a separate VOD menu, which is hidden by default. A variety of Parental Control options are available to further limit access to this content.

To enable access to the Adult VOD store, Parental Controls must be enabled. Then, press D to
access the VOD menu bar, scroll to “VOD Settings”, and enter your
password. Change “Adult VOD” to “Enabled”. Exit the menu,
and press D again. You’ll see a new button in the middle of the menu bar labelled “Adult”.

All Parental Control options (including Purchase Limit) will also apply to Adult content.

As with Adult PPV Content:

There is no free preview period on Adult VOD content

Coupons do not apply to Adult VOD titles

Adult VOD content features discrete billing.

PPV Order Enhancements

PPV programs now feature an “Order ID” in the Guide. You can use this number to quickly place your order via the automated phone system (1-866-782-7778).

Once your receiver gets the order, the “!” alert icon will
appear. Pressing ENTER will display the Purchase History screen,
which will list details of the title you ordered. The “$” sign
will also appear in the Guide on the title you purchased.

You must still setup an auto-tune, recording, or remember to tune in when the PPV starts.

If you didn’t receive confirmation of the purchase and the title
doesn’t appear in Purchase History, use the “receiver refresh” option
via the automated phone system or Self Serve to send the purchase
through again.

In alignment with industry and studio standards, PPV movies recorded
on the HDPVR 630 will be available for unlimited viewing for 48 hours,
after which the title will automatically expire.

External HDD Updates

Once paired, eSATA hotplug is now supported. However,
unplugging your external HDD while it is connected is still not
recommended. (Note that on initial pairing, you must still reboot the
receiver to initiate the connection).

Units with a large number of recordings stored on an external drive
should see improved performance after bootup, in the PVR List, and with
the playback of recent recordings.

This release also updates the Shaw Direct logo to reflect the new brand launched in late Fall.

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If you’ve been curious about Shaw Direct On Demand, but aren’t able
to connect your receiver to the Internet because it’s too far away from
your router, we’re excited to let you know about the ReadyNet Powerline
Bridge!

The
ReadyNet Powerline Bridge allows you to convert any electrical outlet
in your home into an Internet connection. Each kit comes with two
adapters, two Ethernet cables, and an installation CD. Simply connect
one adapter to your home router and a power outlet, and then connect the
other adapter to your 600-series receiver and a nearby power outlet. As
soon as this is completed, you can explore the vast Shaw Direct On Demand library and enjoy your favourite titles!

Once the first bridge is installed, the router connection will be
established; if you need more than one additional Internet connection,
you can just get a second ReadyNet kit for another two connections. The
ReadyNet Powerline bridge sells for $49.99 (taxes extra), and as an
added bonus, you get a coupon for eight free regular Shaw Direct On
Demand titles just for connecting your receiver to Shaw Direct On Demand
(to a maximum value of $7.99 each).

The bridge creates an Internet signal that will pass through your
home’s circuit breaker without any issues, can support a bandwidth of up
to 200 Mbps, and offers 128-bit AES encryption to ensure the security
of your data.

If you’re interested in ordering a ReadyNet Powerline Bridge, you can find them in our online store. If you have any questions for us, please ask in the comments below!

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If you own a HDDSR 600, HDDSR 605, or a HDPVR 630,
your receiver should have downloaded our most recent software, version
08.26. To check if you have received the download, you can go into your
Options menu > 4 > 7 and look at line H. If this says 08.26, you
are good to go with the below changes!

While the overall look and feel of your interface will remain the
same, we have added in some new features and have dramatically changed
your On Demand experience!

We have completely redesigned our Interests Menu to make it even
easier for you to browse through our 4000 + titles available through
Shaw Direct On Demand. This is a direct result of user feedback!

Now, in the first column, you select whether you’re looking for Movies, TV shows, Music or your Premium subscription titles.

In the second column, you are now able to select the channel or network the title is provided by.

With the third column, you are still able to search by genre or other filters.

This layout separates content in a more logical manner, providing you with the results you were looking for in less keystrokes.

Be sure to check out the hundreds of titles that are available at no extra cost
with your subscription! Any titles that are included with a network
that you are not subscribed to will appear grey, just as you’re used to
in your guide.

Other Shaw Direct On Demand Enhancements

Other improvements have been made to your Shaw Direct On Demand
experience, such as faster rewind and fast forward response,
connectivity improvements, more consistent display of season and episode
information under a specific TV show, and the ability to order in both
HD and SD.

Multi-Audio Selections

Some specific TV programs have additional audio tracks available, such as descriptive video (DVS) or another language. This is used to ensure accessibility for all of our customers. When available, you will see the headphones icon (as shown) in the info banner.

To select a different audio track, simply hit the ‘Source’ button on
your remote and select from the list displayed in the top left hand
corner

Your default audio preference (as set in Options > 4 > 1) will be restored once you change the channel.

For HDPVR 630 users:

External Hard Drive Support

You are now able to connect an external eSATA hard drive to increase
your HDPVR 630 recording capacity by up to 2.0 TB! That’s equivalent to
over 1000 SD hours, or 300 HD hours!

External hard drives must be connected via eSATA, must be externally
powered, and cannot be over 2.0 TB. For the most reliability, the drive
should also be rated for PVR/DVR usage.

For complete information on adding an external hard drive to your current HDPVR 630, please take a look here.

If you have any questions about this recent update or about your receiver in general, feel free to leave us a comment and ask!